Caffeine Remedy
by Cyanide-Ocean
Summary: Sometimes you have to peel away the layers of someone who's your polar opposite to see they're not so different from you as you may have thought they were.


"Oh no," Aubrey groaned when she saw Beca walk through the door of the cafe.

"Hey, I didn't know you worked here," the freshman flashed the other woman a thin smile.

"Yeah, I do. My student loans aren't paying themselves, you know. What can I get you?" She remained poised and polite as the brunette was a customer so any personal issues she had with the younger woman would have to not be made evident.

"I didn't realize people here were so friendly to new employees," she smirked.

"Aca-scuse me?" Aubrey choked out her words as she couldn't believe her ears. She already had to see Beca enough at Bellas rehearsals and now at the cafe too was becoming too much for her

"Sorry to burst your bubble since I'm sure you were thinking that you could get me a coffee or something and I'd be on my way. The job at the radio station that I applied to filled up so I'm here now. Guess you get to spend even more time with me now," she laughed, moving behind the counter.

Checking to make sure there weren't any customers entering the cafe, she stepped into the doorway that lead to the back room where Beca hung up her bag and jacket, taking the apron off the hook and put it on, tying it behind her waist. "We may not if our shifts aren't together," she nodded, assuring Beca although her words were spoken more for her own comfort than the freshman's.

"Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 5 to closing at 9," she ticked off each day with her fingers while she walked passed Aubrey and out to where the customers would line up to place their orders, the other woman following behind her.

Aubrey let out a sigh, dreading those days as it was just her luck to have the same work schedule as the younger Bella's. "Same as yours I take it from your reaction of enthusiasm," the freshman smirked again.

"At least it seems one of us is looking forward to it" the older woman pursed her lips together in a pout.

"You can think of it this way: at least you'll be able to know I won't be with any Treble Makers," she winked.

"It'll be the second best part of my day, the first being when I get to spend two hours with you at Bellas rehearsals while you defy my ever decision. Sometimes I think you do it just to give me a hard time," she sighed, tightening her ponytail and grabbed up a rag to go wipe down some recently vacated tables while Beca attended to the customers that began to line up at the cash register.

Their shifts often consisted of them bickering when all the customers had been helped and they were idling time behind the counter or when they were in the back room together and cleaning the cafe at closing hours. They had always taken their breaks at different times for the obvious reason that they couldn't both go on break if there was to be someone to mind the place, but also because they would be spent with the pair engaging in another petty feud over how Beca sometimes splashed the coffee onto the counter and didn't wipe it up right away, how Aubrey was too much of an ocd neat freak, or how neither of them were entirely thrilled about having to work together for the rest of the year when they already had enough of each other at Bellas practices.

Not wanting to hear Aubrey get on her case about not having cleaned up a small stain of coffee on the counter, which she cursed for being white, that she was already planning to clean when it was time to close the cafe as the counter would get dirty again before then anyway, Beca wiped it down using a wet cloth just as the blonde walked by her.

"Finally cleaning up after yourself," Aubrey nodded.

"Only so that you wouldn't be breathing down my neck about it for the rest of the night," she grumbled.

"No one likes to work in a dirty environment and it turns the customers off," she clucked.

"We work in a cafe, Aubrey, it's going to get messy. Are you a germophobe too?"

Aubrey scowled at the mockery, shooting Beca an angry glare, "I'm sorry I like to keep things orderly around here while you would clearly not mind working in a mess," she huffed, going into the back room and returning with a broom to sweep up the floor after the last person had exited the cafe.

The freshman ran a hand through her hair and let out a sigh a she rolled her eyes, "I'm sorry, okay? I'm not trying to say it's a bad thing that you like things to be clean - it's good - it's just frustrating when it all has to be absolutely spotless all the time when it's going to get dirty a second later." She paused trying to think of a solution so that they would at least have one less thing to argue about to make their jobs a little less insufferable. "How about I clean up whenever I know I've made a mess no matter how small, but if it's something like a small drop of coffee on the counter and I miss it, you can either clean it yourself if it really bothers you or leave it until closing and let me know then and I'll get it?"

The older blonde stopped what she was doing and nodded as she went over the proposal in her head before returning to sweeping, "I didn't realize you were able to be flexible and compromise," she chuckled, "It sounds like a deal to me. Thank you."

"I have my moments," the smaller brunette feigned a pout as she crossed her arms though her feigned offended resolve cracked as she broke into a smile. "Why don't you head back to your dorm and I'll get the rest?"

"Are you feeling okay, Mitchell?" Aubrey arched an eyebrow at her though smiled nonetheless.

"You should take advantage of my offer before I change my mind," Beca flashed the Bella one of her signature smirks.

"Alright I will. Thanks again," she smiled as she went to hang up her apron and gather her things. "Wait a second, does this offer have some kind of strings attached to it?" The blonde eyed Beca suspiciously.

"No, I promise it doesn't, but it can if you want it to."

"I think I'll pass, but I appreciate the offer," Aubrey raised her brow, the corners of her lips still curled upwards in a smile as she headed out the door.

Beca's offer that night had sparked a relay of the two of them giving the other a hand from time to time so as to make things a little easier for the other that night whether it be taking care of closing so the other could return to their dorm or taking on an extra chore. Their petty disputes still occurred a couple times a week, but had definitely improved from when they first began working together and every spare moment they had together would be spent at each other's throats. Some days were busy and they didn't get to speak much as they were going from one table to the next to take orders, to making more coffee and refilling the food in the glass displays while other days the number of people that walked into the cafe was scarce, giving the women a chance to talk.

"You quote your dad kind of frequently," Beca mentioned one night when business was sluggish and the two of them were leaning against the counter: Aubrey by the coffee machines and Beca by the cash register.

"I suppose I do," the older Bella replied with a small shrug.

"He seems really strict."

"He is, but he's like that to push me to be better."

"When are you ever good enough though?" The freshman inquired not thinking her question was asking something too personal.

Aubrey pressed her lips together and frowned. "I… I don't know," she muttered in a barely audible voice. "I won't know unless I keep trying to be perfect."

"What's perfect to you?" Beca felt guilty for having caused the other woman to feel upset in the slightest although it had been unintentional, but now she was curious. The lead Bella had always demanded perfection yet never seemed satisfied, so Beca took this as a good opportunity to ask.

"I don't know," Aubrey sighed, "Lacking imperfections," she laughed dryly at how undescriptive her definition was.

"I think imperfections are a good thing though. If you don't have any then that makes you boring and that's not interesting at all," the smaller brunette mused. "I'm not perfect by far - no one is, which includes you too - but I like that. If you were perfect then what would we have to talk about? Even though you're a pain in my ass at rehearsals and sometimes you're really annoying and I just want to yell at you at work though I know I can't because that'd look bad, aside from still thinking you should learn to loosen up a little more, I wouldn't want you to completely change either. Then you wouldn't be the same Aubrey Posen that I got to know and maybe even like just a tiny bit. Oh, but if you tell anyone I said any of that, I'll deny it, swearing up and down that I would never say such things to you," she winked.

Aubrey couldn't help but smile warmly, genuinely moved by Beca's words, though she mentally kicked herself for it as she was so accustomed to always being infuriated by the younger woman that for once enjoying spending time with her, even if it was only because they worked together, was a foreign feeling to her. "Thank you, Beca, that means a lot. And I promise I won't tell anyone you said that to me," she laughed softly.

"What's your dad like anyway, if you don't mind me asking," the brunette questioned, "Sorry if I'm crossing any boundaries, so you don't have to answer if I am."

"It's fine," the senior replied with a shake of her head, "He's, well you can probably imagine. He's incredibly strict as you already guessed - overbearingly so - and demands perfection of me and everyone else. He has, I suppose what most would say, impossibly high standards that he expects everyone he works with to reach and especially me since I'm his daughter. If you do something right he doesn't really acknowledge it, but you'll know you did it to at least an acceptable standard since he won't correct you and tell you what you did wrong as much as if you had actually done whatever it was you were meant to do wrong."

"Wow…" Beca mumbled under her breath. "He sounds kind of like my step-monster, who's my step-mother though I just call her the other name because I think it's more fitting. She'll let you know when she thinks you've done something well as long as it fits her definition which is close to perfection," she rolled her eyes. "My dad just goes along with whatever she says so whenever she's around it's like he just fades into the background, and when it's just him and me around he tries to change my mind about wanting to be a DJ and to instead try to find a more stable job and things like that. My step-mother hates that I'm trying to be a DJ and that my dad's letting me go to L.A. after this year if all goes well to pursue it. They both pretty much disapprove of all my life choices. Sometimes I think my dad wishes he had another daughter or son so that he wouldn't look at me with such disappointment like my step-mother does, and think he screwed up with me or something," she let out a heavy sigh, uncrossing then recrossing her feet in front of her.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Aubrey murmured, staring down at the ground as Beca was doing as well. "I think the same thing about my father - the part where he wishes he had another child so that I wasn't such a disappointment," she sighed.

Beca began to laugh softly to herself, causing Aubrey to look up at her quizzically. "What?"

"Sorry, this just made me think that even though we argue a lot, we're not actually as different as we might've thought we were at first. We both have complicated relationships with our dads, we both feel like we're disappointments to them and we'll never be good enough - we don't really have a family to rely on for support," she gave a halfhearted smile at the older woman. "We're also both opinionated and stubborn to name a couple things too."

"You have a point," Aubrey chuckled, smiling at the freshman.

Silent passed between them for a few minutes as they let their words hang in the air while Aubrey turned to wipe away a non-existent coffee stain on the counter as Beca watched the other woman perform the menial task mindlessly. "Why do you try so hard to please him if he never really takes the time to acknowledge you've done something well? I guess it could just be me, but it seems like a waste of time," the smaller woman shrugged, "But then again I suppose I can't say too much since I used to try and please my parents when I was younger and they were still together. Especially when I knew there was something wrong and they weren't happy together, but they often ended up brushing me aside so eventually I stopped trying and now, well…" Beca trailed off, her shoulders rising in another shrug, "I stopped trying because it doesn't matter what I do anymore - my dad will never notice unless I either become some well renowned doctor, lawyer, or some other high standing job, or completely fall flat on my ass in which case I'd be more of a disappointment than I am now."

"Being a DJ isn't going to be easy, though I'm sure you know that it's hard to make a name for yourself in the music industry, so I'd be - I am, that is - impressed for you for not letting that deter you. I'm sure you'll be a big hit in the club scene," she assured the younger woman with a smile. "I'm not really sure why I keep trying for any other reason aside from wanting to hear him tell me that he's proud of me and that I haven't yet completely failed him," the older Bella's lips curled into a wistful smile. "Although I can see how someone else might think I'm only wasting my time since I know he's likely to never say it."

Beca gave a short laugh, "Thanks. I'm glad you have some faith in me for something," she winked, playfully teasing the blonde as she still refused to try out her ideas at Bellas practices. "And I'm sure you'll be a very successful lawyer. Is he the reason you're working towards being a lawyer?"

"Thank you. Yes, he is, but I also would pursue it anyway even if he hadn't urged me to do so."

"Well I'm glad that you're at least going after something you want. For what it's worth, you deserve to be happy, Aubrey," Beca smiled at her coyly.

"You're just full of compliments today, Ms. Mitchell," the senior hummed, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're really just a big softie at heart. But thank you again, I'm flattered you think so," she smiled.

"I swear to god if you tell anyone that and it gets around, I'll say you're lying and never say anything nice to you again so you won't be able to try and convince people of otherwise," she laughed, turning to face the people that had begun to form a line at the cash register to place their orders.

Aubrey continued to stare at the back of Beca's figure as she helped the people standing there and smiled a minute longer before getting to preparing the drinks they'd asked for. The Beca she'd gotten to know during Bellas rehearsals was completely different from the Beca she'd started to get to better know at work. Beca Mitchell, one of the members of The Bellas, was defiant, snide, and made her job of leading the women excruciatingly difficult, but the Beca Mitchell she'd gotten to know at the cafe was understanding, compassionate, and in time had become a pleasure to work with. It was like meeting two sides to the same coin with the freshman and she wasn't sure which half was more close to being what the brunette was really like than the other although that may have be an unfair statement to make as both sides that she'd gotten to know were equally the real her, but it depended on the situation that the aspiring DJ was in that determined which facet to her personality would manifest. The different sides to the younger woman only gave her more depth in the senior's eyes and in turn caused her to become more intrigued by her as well.

When The Bellas didn't make it to the final round of the ICCA, the two women had gone back to arguing and ignoring each other at work, hiding the tension by plastering on false smiles in front of the customers so as to not create an uncomfortable environment for them to be in. It was as if they had never had those weeks of peace between them before and anyone who had seen them then compared to now would that were able to pick up on the change would be appalled by the abrupt rift if they didn't understand why it had happened. Aubrey was frustrated with the shift between them as things had been going so well and then Beca had to ruin it by going against the routine everyone had practiced and thew in her own ideas at the last second during the performance so the lead Bella was unable to say anything to stop her in the midst of it, instead being forced to let it happen.

It wasn't until she got the call from the ICCA to inform her that The Bellas were back in the competition and the whole chaotic scene that the freshman had walked in on when all hell had broken loose in The Bellas' rehearsal room and they'd sung a mash-up at the pool that Aubrey began to move past her grudge that she held against the future DJ and the two began to slowly talk once again at work. Their conversations were kept casual and nothing nearly as personal as family matters were spoken of as they had been before as neither wanted to dive into subjects such as that one just yet until they could be certain they weren't treading on thin ice with the other. They didn't want a second falling out as they both knew first hand that constantly being at odds with the other was exhausting and drained them each of their energy quickly.

One afternoon Aubrey had been called in to cover someone else's shift as they were unable to go in that day. She didn't want to accept as she had her assignments for classes to work on, but she accepted nonetheless and headed in.

"You look like you got here early," Beca noted when she walked behind the counter and gave the blonde a quick once over.

"I had to cover for someone else so I've been here since 1," she replied coolly as the younger woman tied on her apron.

They didn't say much more to each other as the afternoon was spent going from one table to the next as the customers came and went in a steady stream until closing. Aubrey walked over to a spot on the floor where one of the last customers had spilled part of their drink and asked if she would get it much to her irritation although she accepted anyway telling the woman not to worry about it. As she got down on her hands and knees, she glanced up feeling as if she were being watched and indeed she was, doing a double take when she noticed Beca openly staring at her while she had a cloth in her hand and looked like she'd been in the middle of cleaning the counter, but had stopped. She meant to call her out on it, but instead found herself smiling over at the freshman who continued to stare a minute longer before realizing the blonde was looking back at her and flashed her an abashed smile before hastily turning around to finish what she'd been doing.

"Was there something wrong with the way I looked?" The older Bella questioned, standing on the customer's side of the counter.

Aubrey's unexpected question caused Beca to jump slightly as she turned around to face her, the same sheepish grin still on her face. "Uh, no, it wasn't anything," she felt cheeks redden even more than they already had. "I was just, uh, looking, I guess," she muttered, "Zoned out." She refused to make eye contact with the senior as she stumbled over her words.

"Uh-huh," The older woman eyed her, not believing anything she'd said.

"Honest, I didn't mean to stare!"

"I didn't say you did mean to - you just admitted to it," she laughed airily.

Feeling more flustered by the second, Beca leaned over the counter and kissed Aubrey before she had a chance to fully realize what she was doing and stop herself. Yet it surprised her even more when the blonde began to return her kiss once she recovered from the initial shock of it and cupped a hand on the side of her face. Beca tugged at the collar of Aubrey's dress to pull her closer momentarily before breaking the kiss so that the older Bella could move around to her side of the counter where they continued to exchange ardent kisses.

The freshman reached around Aubrey and began to untie her apron as Aubrey did the same with hers, both women taking them off and Beca tossed them onto the counter behind the blonde as she tugged at her wrists to pull her into the back room. Hopping up to sit on the table in there, Beca pulled the other woman towards her, until she was standing between her legs, and pressed their lips together as she started to undo the zipper of Aubrey's short, blue dress. "I liked what you were wearing today, by the way," she murmured with a smirk.

"I knew you were staring at me for a reason," the older woman replied with a short laugh and kissed Beca again.

She let the article of clothing slip off her body as it dropped to the floor, ignoring how it was likely to get sullied. She reached down for the hem of Beca's shirt, and in a fluid motion, removed it over her head and off her arms, letting it land on the floor as well, leaving them clad in their bras and for Aubrey, in her underwear as well. Their lips collided once more fervently, the freshman's legs wrapping around her while she skated her hands down the front of the freshman's body, intentionally avoiding her breasts as she did so. Beca whimpered as the older blonde's hands explored her body, touching her everywhere except for where she needed the physical contact the most. The senior enjoyed having the brunette at her mercy this way, aware of exactly what Beca wanted from her, but knowing whether or not she obliged was entirely up to her. Finally deciding to indulge the brunette, Aubrey snaked her hands back up the smaller Bella's sides and cupped her hands over her breasts, kneading them over her bra, as Beca moaned, arching her back into it, causing the older woman to smile and kissed the rise of each breast before sliding her hands down to the button of the brunette's jeans and undid them, sliding a hand into them. She leaned in and kissed the freshman's neck to which a breathy moan passed between Beca's lips in response, the fingers of her free hand splayed out against the pale skin of the younger woman's back, keeping their chests pressed together while with her other hand Aubrey glided her fingers along the brunette's entrance.

"Aubrey," Beca whined, placing a hand over the front of her jeans where the senior's hand was beneath them, pressing it against her.

"Uh-uh," the taller Bella smirked, pulling her fingers away from the younger woman though didn't remove her hand from where it was. The more the freshman tried to gain more friction between them, the more Aubrey would resist until Beca let her hand full control. Without warning, she thrust two fingers inside of the petite brunette, eliciting a sharp gasp from her as she slid them in and out of the younger woman at an even yet slow pace just to hear Beca plead once more.

The freshman let out short moans as she exhaled in small bursts, her arms wrapped around the back of Aubrey's neck while her hands tangled into the silky blonde locks of the older Bella's hair. The older woman began to kiss her neck again, picking up her pace much to Beca's relief as she felt herself nearing the precipice of her orgasm. After a few more thrusts of the senior's fingers, Beca gave way to a loud moan, filling the air with Aubrey's name, panting as her body began to relax. She rested her forehead against the other Bella's shoulder for a minute before pushing herself off the table and stepped in front of Aubrey as she turned around to face her. The blonde's eyes widened as Beca flashed her a mischievous smirk, her eyes having long since been dark and glazed over with lust as she got down on her knees, hooking her fingers in the waistband of Aubrey's underwear and pulled it down with her.

"You didn't really think I'd let you off the hook, did you?" Beca questioned, her voice husky.

Aubrey was left speechless, only being able to manage a small shake of her head, her mouth agape a second longer until the corner of her lips began to curl into a dark smile, as she spread her legs.

Beca started by kissing up from her knee, up her inner thigh, stopping short of her entrance. She let out a slow hiss, needing the freshman to stop taking her sweet time as she tangled her fingers into the brunette tresses, pulling at her hair enough to cause pain, but nothing displeasurable, while her nails scrapped against Beca's scalp, resulting in a low moan from the younger woman. However Beca refused to comply, this time being the one to demand complete control if she wanted the smaller brunette to continue. Aubrey's fingers curled, scratching against Beca's head, obliging as she relinquished her control as she uncurled them.

This time she was the one to give way to a throaty moan when the Beca's tongue glided along her folds, pressing against her clit, lingering there for a couple seconds before skimmed back down the length of her center. She gasped, exhaling in another loud moan when the freshman pushed her tongue between her slick folds and curled inside of her.

"Jesus, Beca..!" She growled, pushing the younger woman's head closer to her as she rolled her head back, her breathing coming out in uneven, raspy breaths.

Before long, Beca could feel Aubrey's walls tighten around her and could tell the woman was nearing her climax. Her teeth grazed against the taller Bella's clit as she worked until Aubrey finally cried out her name as she orgasmed. Aubrey moved her hands from where they'd been in Beca's hair to the edge of the table, griping it as she felt herself come undone and her body begin to go lax as she panted, looking down at the smaller brunette. Beca got to her feet, swallowing as she licked her lips, a wolfish smile on her face as she pulled Aubrey down for a kiss.

They dressed in silence, still catching their breath, and finished cleaning up the cafe before locking the door and closing it behind them as they walked out and headed back to the dorms, neither saying a word, rather enjoying the tranquility of the night together. "I'll see you tomorrow at rehearsal," Beca grinned, as she split off and walked towards her dorm building.

"Yeah…" Aubrey mumbled under her breath although the freshman was already out of earshot as she did so and headed back to her room.

The next night that they had work together, the two acted as if nothing happened between them which left Aubrey feeling unsure if she should bring it up or not. As if she'd read her mind, Beca walked up to her when they were closing up the cafe together as usual and rested her elbows against the countertop. "So I was wondering," she began. "About the other night…"

"Yes?" The senior turned around to face her, feeling a light blush spread across her face.

"I really like you," Beca declared boldly.

"I really like you too," she responded with a timid smile while the brunette grinned at her reply.

"Want to date - be girlfriends?"

Aubrey's brow furrowed at the question as she thought about how to answer.

"If you don't want to that's fine too," the brunette raised her hands and began to back away to return to what she'd been doing.

"No, no, it's not that. I'm not so sure if it's a good idea for coworkers to date," the older woman sighed, "But I would really love to be your girlfriend," she smiled shyly.

"Oh! That's okay," Beca reassured her, "A job reopened at the radio station and I got offered the job so I was thinking of taking it. I was going to tell you sooner, but we got swamped with a ton of customers today. Anyway, that would solve the dating coworkers problem though," she looked at the other woman hopefully.

"You did? Congratulations," she smiled at her proudly, "You're right, that would solve the dating a coworker thing," she chuckled.

"So… Will you be my girlfriend then?" Beca asked again with a grin.

"I would love to be your girlfriend," Aubrey beamed, this time being the one to lean over the counter to give Beca a kiss.


End file.
